The long way round
by hollyhobbit101
Summary: Ashildr has an immortal life ahead of her. All she needs now is someone to spend it with. (Clashildr)
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This story will be based around Ashildr and her adventures through the linear version of time. I can't say what will happen in this story, but I will warn you that there will be Clashildr later on, so if you don't like it, don't read it. Hope you enjoy!**

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The long way round 

The people of her village respected Ashildr after the events of the invasion. She had been the one to defeat them and almost die in the process, after all. However, at the same time, they also resented her. They couldn't forgive the odd girl who'd tell the strangest stories for staying young and healthy whilst they all faded away. She became more isolated than she had been before, and only her father loved her as he'd always done.

* * *

She didn't quite realise the meaning of her immortal life until her father passed away. He was a very old man by that time but she was still a young woman. She buried him quietly on the outskirts of their village and then fled. There was nothing left for her there anymore. She still visited his burial site every year on the anniversary of his death, but only briefly for it was too painful otherwise. She could see her village diminish in numbers year by year, see who had survived and who had not.

In spite of all this, Ashildr tried to maintain hope. She refused to let fear and panic invade her mind, and hoped that, one day, the Doctor would come with his box to rescue her. Her resolve crumbled when she woke up one morning and realised she had forgotten where her father rested. She began to panic and desperately search through her memories, to no avail. An immortal life with a mortal memory is no life at all.

* * *

Gradually, she began to forget the girl she had been. The people of her village became a blurred mass of voices until they faded completely, along with the village itself. Her father disappeared soon after, no matter how hard she clung to the sound of his voice and the twinkle in his eye. The last straw was when she could no longer remember her own name. It's a strange feeling, not knowing who you are. Her name was a mantra she had repeated over and over to keep her grounded.

 _My name is Ashildr_

 _My name is Ashildr_

 _My name is Ashildr_

The day she lost her tether was the day she lost all hope. The first few days it was like it was hovering at the edge of her memory, or on the tip of her tongue. She could feel something big was missing. The feeling dissipated after a while, but she never entirely got used to not having a name.

* * *

Time spun around Ashildr but she didn't spin with it. She was doomed to watch others grow old and withered whilst she stayed trapped in her life. She tried to keep her distance from others so that her heart wouldn't be broken more than it already was, but she made the mistake of falling in love one fateful day in the year 1342.

His name had been Thomas Galloway, and he was 23 when they met. He hadn't been particularly handsome or clever, but there was something about him that just drew Ashildr to him. She had been cold, homeless and alone, and he had offered his home, and later his heart, up to her. She had been wary of staying with him at first but, while she might rule over her head, her heart was far from being controlled.

The pair had three children together over the next few years and, for a time, she was blissfully happy. She knew it would have to end at some point but she chose to ignore that fact as best she could. Because she could not give him her real name, he knew Ashildr as Helen. It was a name she had liked for a long time, for one of her best friends had been called Helen. She had forgotten almost everyone from that village, but not Helen. Never Helen.

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It was just a few months after the birth of their third child when the Plague struck. Almost everyone she knew were taken away from her, including her children. Thomas was spared, but barely. He was greatly weakened and she had to tend to him for many months before his health was half of what it used to be. She, of course, was untouched by the blight, and therefore volunteered to care for the sick. Some suspected her of witchcraft, for how could she be well when so many others had died? Most, however, were simply grateful for her help and good fortune, and so life (and death) went on.

Ashildr continued living there for five years after the Plague had relinquished it's grip on the town. She knew that she would have to leave at some point though, before the questions started. Before people realised that they were aging into old men and women whilst she still looked like a young woman. When she felt that Thomas was as well as he was ever going to be, Ashildr faked her death and ran far away.

It took many years for that place to fade from her mind forever. She went back about 50 years later to find Thomas lying on his deathbed in their old house. He saw her, but thought she was just a dream, or the spirit of his old love come to take him to Heaven. He breathed his last that night, his hand clasped tightly in hers.

* * *

After that moment, Ashildr built walls around her heart and swore that no one would breach them again. She turned to crime in the mid-1500's, which is when the Doctor found her again. She was disappointed to learn that Clara wasn't with him that time, but also glad. Ashildr did tell the Doctor the truth that day; she always took a note of people's weaknesses. Clara, however, wasn't the Doctor's weakness. She was hers.

He left Ashildr with Sam Swift, probably in the hope that he would tear down the barricade she had built. But the barrier was strong, and Sam was far too weak to even dent it. Their time together was brief, and they parted only a century after they met. To most, a century would seem like a long time to be with one person, but it was a mere drop in the ocean for an immortal like her.

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Ashildr travelled across the world, somehow ending up in America in the 1930s. She liked it there and spent many hours wandering around the busy streets. In 1938, whilst sightseeing in Manhattan, she spotted a young woman with flaming red hair embracing a man sitting on a park bench. They were both crying and wearing clothes she'd never seen before. She dismissed them as young lovers with a life (and a death) ahead of them, but couldn't help but wish she were in their place.

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She did catch up to the famous Jack Harkness once, but found him insufferably self-absorbed and couldn't stand to be around him, so they parted ways as mutual acquaintances.

Ashildr travelled around the linear version of time alone, and rarely spoke to anyone. It wasn't until the end of the world when she finally encountered the Doctor again. And Clara. Clara who she had watched die thousands of years ago.

Clara. Now made immortal by the Doctor's stupidity and love for her. Perhaps Ashildr was being selfish when she said she was glad Clara still had some 'wiggle room' left to live in, but she didn't care. While her heart still had those hard walls around them, maybe Clara Oswald would be the one to knock them down.

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 **A/N: Thank you guys so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed. This story is going to be detailing Clara and Ashildr's adventures as immortal space gays. Don't like, don't read. I'd love to hear what you think about this story also please leave a review with your thoughts and criticisms if you want. I'll try and update asap. Bye!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hey guys! I'm back and I'm so sorry for the long wait for this next chapter. I've been writing it on paper for weeks but never typed it up because I'm a massive procrastinator. But it's my birthday tomorrow so I thought I'd better do it. Also, thank you so much to everyone who reviewed! They made my day!**

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Chapter 2

"Where are we going?" Ashildr asked, lounging against the console and probably pressing a whole manner of buttons she wasn't meant to press. Clara fiddled with the hem of her skirt as she flipped the levers to program their TARDIS. There was a sad look in her eyes that came from her encounter with the Doctor but she still managed to flash Ashildr a grin.

"Not telling."

"Why not? You know I hate surprises," she complained.

"Trust me, you're going to love it. Now, get off the console else you'll mess up our co-ordinates." Clara winked at her before turning away. Ashildr pushed off from where she was leaning and followed her, begging to know where they were headed. Clara, however, kept annoyingly tight-lipped about it, and so she was forced to suffer.

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"Come here," Clara called to her. Ashildr looked over and saw she was holding a strip of material in her hands and had a mischievous look on her face.

"Oh, no. I am not having that thing over my eyes. I don't care how big this surprise is. I refuse."

"Come on, Ash." Clara gazed at her with those huge puppy dog eyes and Ashildr felt her heart melt. Before she thought to stop herself, she walked over to Clara and let her tie the material round her head. "Alright, hold onto my jacket and follow me."

They started walking and, almost immediately, Ashildr tripped over a loose wire on the floor. She was still holding onto Clara when she fell, so she got dragged down too. They landed in a heap, Clara giggling uncontrollably.

"Stop laughing and help me up!" Ashildr grumbled.

"Just a second," Clara wheezed, before breaking out in laughter again.

"Fine, I'll do it myself." Ash tried to blindly grab at something to pull herself up, but her hand slipped and she fell hard again, causing Clara to laugh harder.

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After a good five minutes that consisted mostly of Ashildr's moaning and Clara's uncontrollable mirth, the pair finally managed to untangle themselves and successfully make it out the TARDIS. Clara reached up and untied Ash's blindfold. She blinked in the bright light until her eyes adjusted and looked across the valley. Smoke rose in the distance and the sounds of a village drifted across to them. The place seemed strangely familiar and even the air she breathed felt different. Yes, she knew this place. She knew it... but didn't. Memories of a long ago childhood came rushing back, only to immediately fade again, like breath on a mirror.

"Where are we?" she asked, wincing as Clara's happy grin disappeared.

"You really don't remember?"

Ashildr mournfully shook her head. "I remember... happiness. It was peaceful here."

Clara nodded. "You loved this village."

"I know. I can feel it. I remember feelings, emotions, but nothing else. Except... No, it doesn't matter."

"Tell me. Please." Clara did the eyes again and Ashildr relented. She really needed to work on that.

"There was this one girl. Her name was Helen, and she was the only person, besides my father of course, who treated me like a normal human being. Everyone else just ignored me, or called me mad."

"What did she look like?"

Ashildr frowned, as if straining to remember. "She had dark hair that looked like silk when it hung loose - although she rarely wore it that way, normally it was in two braids coiled on top of her head. She had bright green eyes the colour of emeralds and a kind face." She broke off, flushed. "I- I'm sorry. You don't need to know all this."

"No, I really want to know," Clara said earnestly. "Besides, there's someone here to see you."

Ashildr turned sharply and her breath caught in her throat. Someone, someone who looked just like Helen, was standing a few yards away, staring at her. Ashildr spun to look at Clara, who nodded encouragingly, and sprinted towards her old friend. The two embraced fiercely and clasped each other's hands, talking rapidly.

"Ash!" Helen exclaimed. "We thought you were dead! It's been so long, yet you haven't aged a day! What happened to you, my friend?"

"It's a long story, Helen. Do you have a place where we can tell it?"

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Helen's home was small and cosy. The three of them sat on low stools around the fire with bowls of hot broth clasped between their fingers. They spoke in hushed voices late into the night about what they had been up to. At first Helen didn't believe Ashildr's tale of aliens, thievery and a time travelling 1950s diner, but she eventually came round.

"Your life sounds so exciting, Ash," she sighed. "I wish I had done half of what you have."

Ashildr shook her head. "No, you really don't."

"Well, the village hasn't been the same since you left. It's so boring without you around."

"I'm sure many of the villagers don't share your opinion," Ashildr laughed.

Helen chuckled. "No, I suppose you're right." She yawned and stretched. "Will you stay the night? Please?"

Ashildr looked pleadingly at Clara; this time she was the one to utilise the puppy dog eyes. Clara laughed and nodded. "We'd love to."

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 **A/N: I think that's a decent place to end it. I'll try and update soon, definitely faster than this time. I hope you enjoyed this, and please review! Bye!**


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